


Dark Thing

by Brim



Category: Granblue Fantasy (Video Game)
Genre: ...and a bit more than that but its not nsfw, Canon Compliant, M/M, Touching, faafer, i guess, uhhh theres a bit of 000 spoilers at the end, with a pinch of lucisan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-04
Updated: 2019-03-04
Packaged: 2019-11-12 00:19:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,929
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18000203
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Brim/pseuds/Brim
Summary: Lucilius and Lucifer knew each other intimately.





	Dark Thing

**Author's Note:**

> disclaimer: no beta, so if theres a typo or a missing word...I'm sorry
> 
> disclaimer 2: contains spoilers for 000 part 1 at the end!

****

_“Built in the mirror image of a god, you are my vessel to eternity.”_

_…_

  The creation of an absolute being that governs evolution.

   It was a hobby of Lucilius, might even call it a _passion project_. Originally his interest in creating beast was purely for the sake of fulfilling the Astrals’ requests so they would leave him to his own devices. It wasn’t until he allowed himself more freedom and let his creativity roam more freely did he find that not even the sky is the limit to his genius. A spark of hope grew in the midst of darkness.

   In his small laboratory, unattended, he created. Lucilius gathered the finest materials, slaved countless days and nights over the function and execution until eventually…

  There was faint sentimentality of course, but it went unsaid. Some things are better left unsaid.

“Huh.” Lucilius huffed of exertion when his masterpiece was done. Catching the slight noise, his creature turned his head and looked up to his creator, curious. His eyes shimmered like two blue diamonds.  

   The creature’s form gradually hardened into a corporal one. Droplets of amber-colored, translucent liquid rolled down his naked skin. His six white wing glew, gently illuminating the darkness in Lucilius’ office. His mouth opened faintly but no sound came out.

   The Astral researcher took a step closer to his kneeling creature and lowered himself to his eye level. Lucilius extended his hand towards him until his gloved fingers slid across the side of his face and cupped the creature’s cheek.  This was his masterpiece, its appearance an exact copy of himself, or so he claimed.

    The creature’s skin was still tender but the researcher’s touch contained kindness that couldn’t be seen in his eyes.

“Perfect. Your name is Lucifer.” Lucilius smiled. After Lucifer, to set his creations as different from the rest of the primal beasts, he started calling them Primarchs.

…

 

“Calling me _researcher_ is too formal.” It reminded Lucilius too much of the unpleasant meetings with Astrals or the boring texts skydwellers wrote. “Call me something else.”

“What should I call you then?” Lucifer stood by his side. Both were overlooking charts and diagrams, making plans for future creatures. Lucilius smirked.

“How about _friend_? We are friends after all.” Lucilius laughed. It was a short, sardonic laugh but Lucifer didn’t catch that.

“Alright then, my friend.” He tested it and found the word comfortable.

  It was one of the few things Lucilius never bothered to correct.

…

 

   Lucilius was rarely late for their meetings. A few hours passed and Lucifer idled at their usual meeting spot on the Astral Laboratory balconies. The late afternoon turned into evening and Lucifer decided to head for the Astral researcher’s personal quarters to look for his friend.

   The sight of the Supreme Primarch there didn’t catch any of the Astrals’ attention. Beasts rarely found themselves having to report to Lucilius directly but it still happened here and there. Usually it was Lucifer or Belial.

   Lucifer knocked on the door out of courtesy. There was no reply, not that he expected any, but Lucifer waited for a moment before making his way in. Lucilius’ personal corner consisted of a lounge area and a desk area, surrounded by large bookshelves. It wasn’t a model of order and tidy, but more of a “perfectly organized mess” – stacks of papers, books and various projects were chaotically thrown around on the floor, the armchairs and the table. The deputy head researcher tried to clean up the place once, but he misplaced things so badly and he received a punishment so severe, that afterwards nobody dared to touch Lucilius’ things ever again, whether it be Astral or Primarch.

“Ah, my friend!” Lucifer called him once he noticed that he was sitting at his desk, but there was no reply. Lucilius was sitting hunched over, head low enough to rest it on his forearms like a pillow. Lucifer was about to comment that a pose like that was bad for his back but the Supreme Primarch heard Lucilius’ soft, steady breathing and quickly realized what happened. His friend was asleep.

   Lucifer approached him, cautious not to trip or hit any of the Lucilius’ things with his wings.

“My friend, if you sleep in that position your neck will hurt.” Lucifer warned but there was no reaction again. It seemed like his friend was very tired but leaving him resting there would prove detrimental to him.

“Please wake up.” He urged but Lucilius’ eyes remained closed. “Lucilius…” A while passed since he last called him by name. He placed his hand on his shoulder and gently shook. Moments later his friend’s eyes slowly cracked open and pale blue stared into pale blue.

“You will find yourself coming to regret that pose.” Lucifer smiled faintly with his successful wake-up call.

“Go away.” The usual force of a command was lacking from his voice so Lucifer continued urging him. Lucilius buried his face in his forearms again.

“Rest. It would be detrimental to you if you continue working in this state.” Lucifer shook his shoulder again, this time more energetic and Lucilius lifted his head and blinked. He stared back at his creation.

“I’m fine now.” He yawned, covering his mouth with a gloved hand.

“I skimmed through your paper from here and I saw that you wrote the same sentence twice in a roll.” Lucilius looked down at his work and frowned.

“Enough. I’ve had enough of you.” Lucilius got up on his feet but the sudden rapid change in movement and position made his head feel even dizzier than it already was.  He staggered. Lucifer quickly moved to support him, putting one around his back and under his shoulder and the other on his chest.

“Please listen to me.” Lucifer stubbornly continued.

“Fine then.” Lucilius relented and Lucifer nodded. With a firm hold he supported his half-dazed friend through his office and towards the faded red canapé. Lucilius lied down and immediately closed his eyes again. He adjusted himself to a more comfortable position.

“Are you leaving now?” He didn’t open his eyes.

“I will stay with you until you fall asleep.” Lucifer moved a stack of books from the armchair and placed them on the floor besides it. He sat down, his wings tucked in close and peered towards his friend, patiently.

 _So he doesn’t trust me, huh_. Lucilius huffed in amusement. He didn’t mull too much on it because his consciousness quickly faded back to oblivion. A faint _goodnight_ was the last thing he remembered hearing when he woke up the next morning.

…

 

    _Affection._ It was something Lucilius deemed unnecessary so he never bothered teaching his beasts about it. It wasn’t until Lucifer, with his intellect and endless curiosity came to him that he ever entertained the idea of touching his own creation.

“You want to learn more about the ways skydwellers communicate?” Lucilius raised a brow.

“Yes.” They were alone in the laboratory’s chamber. Lucilius summoned him to ask about his opinion and then Lucifer made his request.

“And why?” Lucilius turned his eyes back to his paper and continued multitasking.

“Physical intimacy is considered by the skydwellers to be an act of expressing feelings, between two peers. It can often convey the real meaning or intention of an interaction in way that accompanying speech simply cannot do. Most people partake in it as a natural part of their interpersonal relationship.”

   Lucilius stopped writing. That was an unnecessarily long answer that still dodged the question.

“Why do _you_ consider it necessary to learn about?” He repeated his question. Lucifer didn’t answer immediately.

“Due to its importance in the way this communication plays between two people, I thought that it’s vital when it comes to two individuals understanding each other.”

   Lucilius threw his folder on the table and turned to Lucifer. The Supreme Primarch remained still, waiting for his friends answer. Lucilius walked right in front of him, close enough that one more step and he would bump into him. He looked down and hastily pulled his glove off. His hand was pale, like the rest of the body of a researcher who spends most of his days hidden from the sunlight.

    He brought his hand to Lucifer’s face. Before even touching him, Lucifer could feel a ghost sensation on his face. Lucifer looked at his friend in surprise.

“Here.” Lucilius’ fingers touched his cheek – the sensation of his bare fingers on his face was cold. Lucifer flinched, momentarily closing his eyes only to open them to Lucilius’ face right in front of his. Both sustained eye contact.

“Do you understand now?” Lucilius could feel the gentle warmth radiating from the Supreme Primarch’s core. Lucilius lightly caressed his cheek with the back of his hand and Lucifer smiled faintly.

“Yes.” Lucifer slowly nodded. Lucilius moved his hand over his head and pat him.

“Good boy.” He placed his hand on his face, lightly touching his cheek and tenderly ran his thumb across the underside of his eye.

“This is rather enjoyable.” Lucifer commented after a while. 

“I suppose.” Lucilius smirked. He pinched Lucifer’s cheek, pulling it a bit. Lucifer’s mouth stretched out into a flat line.

“My friend?” Lucifer realized that talking with his cheek pinched wasn’t easy.

“It’s nothing.”

…

 

“Those new candidates are rather unruly, aren’t they?”

“Stress and fear makes them too agitated…” Lucilius commented under his nose.

 

    Whenever archangels refused to cooperate with the Astrals, the High Council sends their creator, Lucilius, to deal with them as he saw fit. A group of eight or so Primarchs kept disobeying instructions and refused to partake in their intelligence evaluation – they didn’t answer their questions and kept silent the entire time the Astrals talked to them.

    Normally tests like these were not something Lucilius handled due to conflict in interests, but because the situation was deemed too obstructing, he was the one send to take care of it. It was some convoluted form of punishment for him, whom had to free time from his schedule and them, because they had to deal with him and his methods.

    At the sight of Lucilius hastily entering the testing chamber, the primal beasts stopped the chatter between each other and tensed up. They noticed that the Astral researcher was carrying a basket. 

“Everyone will receive one.” He explained with a flat tone. Lucilius passed each archangel and gave them a differently colored bracelet from the basket. The bracelets had a simple design – a plain stretchable band that could easily go around the wrist.

   The angels smiled shyly when they received their present. As time passed, they got calmer and calmer. Some of them were quick to put their bracelets on, proudly looking at the very first gift they ever received. Others were more hesitant and just held on to it.

   When he was done giving out the bracelets, Lucilius put the basket on the single table in the room and took a chart out.

“Now I will ask a series of questions.” The mood quickly changed again. A strained silence filled the room. “Why is the balance between the tetra elements important?”

    The silence continued. Nobody dared to answer. Just like with the Astrals, the Primarch avoided answering the question and instead looked nervously among each other.

“Green will answer.” Lucilius ordered. The angels faces turned white when realization dawned on them - the bracelets were not gifts but markers. Previously, whenever the Astrals asked them questions, it was in groups and they relied on their group silence as protection since the Astrals never addressed them individually. Lucilius singled them out in the group and directly addressed each of them by picking a random color from the basket.

“Well?” He looked around, getting annoyed. Agitating him even further would prove more detrimental – unlike the other Astrals, Lucilius knew how to recycle materials effectively. One of them had to answer otherwise they risk the entire group’s future.

“I think…it has to do with the island’s buoyancy.” The one with the green bracelet was a male Primarch with dark blue wings. He was too stressed to think of a convenient lie so he blurted out the first thing that came to his mind.

    Lucilius wrote down his remark on the chart. 

“Next is red.” This time it was a short female Primarch with gradient green wings. In the peripheral of his vision, he saw the red band around her wrist. “What is the result of the war between the Astrals and the moondwellers?”

“I, um…the moondwellers never reached the Skies…” The girl nervously rubbed her hands and looked down.

 

   The oral examination continued for 2 hours. Lucilius gave them questions and said which bracelet color had to answer it. By the time his report was completed, he was getting more and more annoyed with the Astrals’ regulations and limitations.

“In 3 hours, the following colors will report to my Laboratory. Green. Magenta. Blue. White.” It was half of them. Recently the Astrals introduced concrete regulations about primarch’s mental capabilities as well. His newer models followed it but he was instructed to correct older models with non-vital functions as well. Lucilius refused, naturally, but a compromise had to be made so a few of them were evaluated and went through a procedure which essentially resets their minds and the way it works.  

…

 

   As the Supreme Primarch, Lucifer didn’t have much time for himself but he never complained about it. His friend often called for his opinion and Lucifer was always happy to help him – it was one of those rare moments in which he wasn’t following his duties and watching over the skies. Together they bounced ideas off each other and planned projects. Lucifer was very reliable when it came to fact-checking or constructive criticism.

   One morning, Lucilius called him in his office. There was a device in his hand. It was an ornate stick, about as long as a cane. Lucifer asked him about it.

“This is a magical device used for controlling elemental particles around the user however they wish.” Lucilius explained with a flat tone. Lucifer nodded.

“So it’s a wand?”

“Yes, I suppose.” Lucilius stared down at it and narrowed his eyes. Calling it a wand oversimplified it because wands helped magicians control elements with their own powers while this device did the entire work for you. A device like this could work as the basis of a weapon or a means to control unpredictable elements. Such as ones not of this world.

“Unfortunately it’s still a work in progress.” Lucilius placed it on his desk and took a few documents. “That’s not what I called you for. Here, I wanted you to review these wings. Their prototype hasn’t been performing as expected and I wanted your output on what corrections can be made.”

   He gave the documents to Lucifer for review and leaned against his desk, arms folded. Lucifer took a careful look at the documents, skimmed through charts and after a few minutes he looked back at his friend.

“I think that you should consider the energy input.”

“Care to clarify?”

“The cores you are trying to use are too powerful for the Primarch’s physical frame and they can’t maintain it. It makes them unstable and it can lead them to self-destruct under pressure.”

   Lucilius narrowed his eyes again.

“I’ve considered working with finer materials but my hands are tied because of the High Council.”

“Have you tried using different cores? Perhaps you can save these ones for a different project.”

“I have but that would take more time to prepare since I will have to rework everything from the very beginning due to compatibility issues.”

    Lucifer put his hand under his chin, deep in thoughts.

“You could try to--” Lucifer didn’t finish. He was interrupted by the sound of something rolling on the desk’s wooden surface followed by a loud thud. Lucilius frowned. Lucifer looked at the desk.

“The device dropped.” Lucifer pointed out the obvious.

“Just ignore it for now.” Lucilius exhaled and closed his eye. This time around his office had an inconvenient design. It was a large hall, surrounded by tall bookshelves. It had a lot of space for his projects but the supporting pillars were put in the center of the halls and his desk space and tables were placed around the pillars in a circle so whenever something fell behind the desk, it was an entire hassle to get behind the desks and get it back.

“It’s alright. I’ll go get it for you.” Lucifer smiled faintly and walked up to the desk.

“Lucifer.” Lucilius sighed but stepped aside. His creation was being stubborn again. Lucifer hovered over the desk, trying to peek into the gap between the pillar and the desk. It was wide enough for him to fit his hand in but…

“Lucifer, just ignore it. I’ll get it later.” Lucilius folded his arms again. Later, meant never for him because the device wasn’t functioning as it should so retrieving it was pointless. It was probably going to be another one of his projects labelled as _mysteriously disappeared_. 

“No, it sounded important to you. It will take just a moment because I can see it.” Lucifer moved a few stacks of papers to the ground and moved the books to the side of the table. He tried to reach deeper in the gap but the desk was too high. He would have to lie across it for more support.

    So, he did.

“Lucifer, this is ridiculous.” He heard Lucilius voice from somewhere behind him.

“I think I can almost reach it.” Lucifer practically tip toed on his boots, completely lying on the table, trying to reach deeper and deeper. His head was turned to the side, bumping into the pillar so he couldn’t see what he was doing but his fingertips grazed the device while he searched.

    Unfortunately, he still couldn’t reach it.

“Stand up. Your wings are getting in the way.” Lucifer relented and stood up.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t retrieve it.” His wings were tucked in low. Lucifer wished that he could use his powers but the High Council forbid him to use his powers as the Supreme Primarch inside Astral facilities without their permission.

    Lucilius clicked his tongue.

“I can retrieve it from underneath the table.” Lucilius suggested and Lucifer beamed at him.

“That is a good idea.” Lucilius didn’t like the idea of lying on the dirty ground. He wasn’t an old _rug_ , but for some reason Lucifer was so fixated on retrieving his device that Lucilius got invested in it as well.

   He sighed and knelt down. The desk was tall but not tall enough for him to squeeze himself in without sitting down. He leaned on the side of his folded leg and extended his other leg, careful not to bump his head so that he could fit underneath. He reached out with one hand and used his other hand to brace himself by holding the edges of the desk for support.

     Lucifer crouched beside the table. 

“Can you see it? It’s over there.” Lucifer directed him and Lucilius nodded.

“When I grab it, I’ll tell you to pull me out.” Lucilius explained and Lucifer hummed in acknowledgment. His gloved fingers grazed the device so he reached in deeper, until he managed to grab it.

“Got it. You can—“ He didn’t even finish when he felt a firm grip around his ankle followed by a strong pull which immediately slid him fully out from underneath the table.  Lucilius blinked in surprise, holding the device in his hand.

“There it is.” Lucifer sounded relieved.

    At that moment, Belial burst into Lucilius’ personal chamber. The deputy was holding a folder, tucked under his shoulder.

“Cilius, that report you wanted is—oh.” Belial’s brows rose and his mouth remained open. He walked in to the sight of Lucilius on the lounging on the ground with a wand in his hand and the Supreme Primarch kneeling besides his creator with his hand around his ankle.

“That’s kinky. Mind if I join?” Belial’s grin widened. 

     Lucifer looked at him confused while Lucilius massaged his temple in frustration. He had half the mind to throw the stick at him for entering without knocking.

…

 

  Lucilius was having a bad day. The High Council changed deadlines and he found himself stuck in the throat of their needlessly endless bureaucracy again. He spent the entire day in his small personal office, surrounded by towers of books and stacks of papers he had to get through by nightfall. Sitting by his desk the entire day was taking a toll on his body and he occasionally got up and made circles around his office whenever he picked the next task or agitation born from reviewing a colleges’ stupidity made him unable to sit still due to outrage.  Overall, it was a highly unpleasant situation for Lucilius.  

  Therefore, when Lucifer entered his office, uninvited, Lucilius didn’t even turn to greet him. The Supreme Primarch walked up to him with a confident stride and greeted him.

“Good afternoon, my friend.”

“Lucifer. What are you doing here?” He finished a paper and put it aside. Lucifer glanced at it, curious but didn’t say anything, just remained by his side, contemplating.

“You seem busy.” Lucifer leaned over his shoulder, looking at his friend’s misery and his seemingly unending stack of papers.

“Obviously.” Lucilius almost groaned in frustration. He pushed his chair and Lucifer took a step back. Lucilius turned the chair towards him, its legs scratching on old wood and narrowed his eyes at the Supreme Primarch. Lucifer stood right in front of him.

“What is it, Lucifer?”

   Lucifer didn’t say anything. He leaned closer to Lucilius. The Supreme Primarch looked at his friend blankly, as if at a complete loss at what to do. With a grave expression he put his arms around Lucilius’ neck and came closer and closer until their noses were touching. He closed his eyes and kissed the corner of Lucilius’ mouth. The kiss was short and innocent, more of a peck than a kiss.

   For that brief moment, all the sounds in the world went silent.

 “What are you doing, Lucifer?” Lucilius didn’t know what came over Lucifer. He put his hand on Lucifer’s face, halting his movement and gently pushed him away. Lucifer blinked surprised and looked back at his friend with wide eyes. Lucilius’s expression went from displeased to bemused.

“Belial told me that this will help you relax.” Lucifer explained briefly.

 _“Our dear old Cilius is very stressed, you see? But I know something that will make him feel a lot better.”_ Earlier, Belial smiled at him and Lucifer lent him an ear, listening to his fellow Primarch’s instructions. He didn’t know what the goal of it was but the way Belial sounded confident with his proposal convinced Lucifer.

   However it looked like he either didn’t follow the instructions properly or Belial was wrong.

“Did that waste of materials touch you?” Lucilius narrowed his eyes, scowling. The sharp glare in his eyes was enough to slay even the toughest Primarch.

“No.” The deputy wasn’t that stupid after all. Lucilius sighed and looked back at Lucifer’s face and considered. Lucifer remained still, putting his arms on his friend’s armrests for support.

    Eventually, Lucilius smirked.

“Come here.” He put his hands on the sides of Lucifer’s face and pulled him closer. Lucilius tilted his head and closed his eyes. Their lips touched and they kissed. It was just a touch, warmth against warmth.

    But Lucilius wanted more - powerful emotions took him like a stormy ocean. He tugged Lucifer by the scarf and the kiss deepened. Lucifer practically sat on his friends lap and Lucilius placed his hand at the small of his back, pulling him even closer until their bodies were leaning against each other. Lucifer moaned in surprise, lips partially opened and Lucilius breathed through him. It was an overpowering kiss that made Lucifer slack in Lucilius’ arms.

   Lucifer's body was always pliable, always following his will and commands. The Supreme Primarch put his hand behind his creator’s head, while Lucilius put his other hand at the base of Lucifer’s neck, steadying him while they kissed.

   Lucilius tasted the tongue that never lies.

   When the kiss ended, Lucifer was breathless. He put his hands on Lucilius shoulder and looked at his friend with shining blue eyes. His mouth remained partially opened but he said nothing. Lucilius huffed in amusement and put a finger under Lucifer’s collar. He pulled it down and leaned close. Lucifer closed his eyes again when Lucilius kissed the side of his neck, biting and sucking the delicate skin. Lucifer moaned, his fingers digging into his friend’s shoulder.

    It was a sensation like he’d never experienced again.

“You can hide this easily with your collar.” Lucilius explained to him afterwards when a small bruise formed.

“My friend, what is…” Lucifer started but remained silent at a loss of what transpired between them. Lucilius regarded him with a look but then returned to his papers.

“It was a purely physical activity.” He answered anyway.  Lucifer nodded and left.

 

   In the evening, Lucifer saw the deputy in the hallways again.

“Ah.” Belial grinned at the sight of the Supreme Primarch. “It looks like you and Cilius had a bit of fun, huh?” He laughed and pointed at his own collar. Lucifer blinked and touched his neck. He felt faint pain at the touch but he was more surprised that the bruise remained rather than the fact that it was noticeable.

“I’m happy to inform you that Cilius managed to complete his assignments in time. Good job.” Belial’s tone was light, playful, almost as if he was mocking him. The subtlety was lost on Lucifer.

“I am glad to hear.” Lucifer smiled faintly and they both parted on their ways.

…

 

    Lucifer was created as a perfect being, the highest on the evolutionary ladder and he was tasked with overlooking it. In truth, it was Lucilius’ attempt at creating a god. An artificial one, but still a god. He knew _intimately_ of the old gods and knew what was legend and what was truth. He knew of their strength and flaws and he also knew how to make them better, stronger. Unlike their stagnant forms through the thousands of years since the world was created, Lucilius’ beasts could be improved. As such sometimes upgrades were in order. Lucifer was one of the few primal beasts he performed the operation on personally and the only one he took extra care in doing so.

    They were in the privacy of Lucilius’ personal laboratory. Lucifer was down to his knees and hands on the ground, while his friend stood beside him and operated on his wings.

“Hold still and it won’t hurt as much.” Lucilius explained with a dispassionate tone. Lucifer, with his head lowered to the ground simply nodded and closed his eyes, inhaling and exhaling deeply. The Supreme Primarch was stripped down to his pants and thin undershirt. The pressure on his back coupled with the chill in the room occasionally made Lucifer shiver but Lucilius was precise and expert enough to not let it detriment his work.

“Does anything feel out of place?” Lucilius paused and Lucifer straightened his arms. Lucilius used the moment and put a hand on his forehead to gauge his condition. There was faint warmth behind the fabric of his glove but nothing too alarming.

“I’m fine.” Lucifer’s eyes were half open, dazed from the pain, but it wasn’t something he hadn’t gone through before or wasn’t used to. He rarely had procedures performed on him but it was something very hard to forget about.

    Lucilius hummed and continued his work.

“This power belonged to the Omnipotent and now it’s yours, hidden from the Astrals.” It was idle talk, something to distract Lucifer with and something for Lucilius to reminiscence over. He finished putting in the part so the rest was just making sure everything was alright and then clean up.

“Why?” Lucifer gasped out, feeling something sharp at the base of his second pair of wings.

“It’s a gift.” A _gift?_ The concept was lost on Lucifer but he didn’t confess. Whatever Lucilius put in him was quickly assimilated by his body and he felt his head spinning even more. His arms shook, unsteady. Lucilius noticed that.

“Your wings are the most valuable part of your body, therefore you should treat them with great care.” Lucilius commented, his hand moving to work on the upper set of wings. With one hand he idly combed the wing with his fingers. A few old feathers dropped to the ground. 

“Shouldn’t you as well?” Lucifer panted. He slightly turned his head and with the peripheral of his vision he could see Lucilius.

 _Are you calling me careless?_ Lucilius frowned and yanked the wing which caused Lucifer to flinch, closing his eyes and lowering his head to the ground again. The wings were also an angel’s most sensitive organ.

“This is a very disgraceful pose, Lucifer. Don’t you dare show it to anyone else.” He scolded and relaxed his grip on the wing, massaging the sore spot at the base.

“Yes.” Lucifer moaned, agreeing without any further resistance.

“Good.”

    Lucilius continued running his fingers through the wings, caressing and combing the feathers, removing any of the fallen plumes. The touches send waves of pleasure across Lucifer’s body and he closed his eyes, breathing shallow. His body rocked, barely remained balanced on shaking hands.

    When Lucilius finished removing the molt he stepped aside and Lucifer exhaled, tired.

“Stand up.”

    The Supreme Primarch got up on unsteady feet, dazed from the procedure. Lucifer could still feel the warmth on his face and behind his ears. Lucilius glanced at him and went towards his desk to write down his evaluation. Meanwhile Lucifer sat on the examination table and rested until his head cleared.

“Your response function is working properly and I didn’t see any abnormalities. The wings are in a satisfactory condition.” However, there seemed that there was a shortage of _improvement_ since the last time he did an evaluation and the thought depressed Lucilius.

“Alright, then thank you, my friend.” Lucifer was quick to recover and went to put the rest of his armor on while Lucilius finished his report.  

…

 

   One day, as they walked towards the testing chambers…

“Your interest in the world seems to run deeper than just your duties.”

“Yes, I find the skies and its people very fascinating.”

“Then how do you feel about creating your own creature?” Something in Lucifer’s eyes glimmered.

 

   Lucifer had a creation of his own. Its name was Sandalphon. Lucilius was tasked with overlooking his project as all matters relating to the Supreme Primarch were things he personally handled, however he offered Lucifer complete freedom when it came to his creation and how it’s managed. It would be a lie to say that he wasn’t curious what Lucifer would do.

      With that said, Lucifer’s creature was extremely average looking.

“Cilius, don’t you want to see what Lucifer’s pet is capable of?” Belial idled in his office, sitting on the table by the window and looking out towards the Laboratory’s courtyard. Lucilius’ office at the Astral Laboratory was a room with a tall ceiling in one of the towers overlooking the testing grounds. There was a good view of the trainees.

“There is no need.” Lucilius continued writing his report on his desk. The High Council was very quick to eat the idea of a _replacement_ for the Supreme Primarch.  Not that he needed one - nothing could replace Lucifer.

“Well, I wanted to see so I’m watching this.” Belial leaned forward, his head peeking out of the window. The big glass window in the office was open and the early morning chill seeped in. An invincible force field, Astral magic, prevented any strong gusts of wind blowing through the room and causing the stacked papers and folders to fly in a flurry.

     Finding himself distracted, Lucilius looked outside as well.

 

   Sandalphon flew and moved as the Astral with a monotone voice instructed him to. His performance was average - nothing worth praising, nothing worth scolding.

“Next, you will duel.”

     The angels drew out their weapons and split into duos to battle each other.

 _“I don’t know why I’m here…”_ Most of the angels Sandalphon trained with were combatants that were going to be deployed close to the borders of the Otherworld soon. He waited, anxiously, for his own instructions but they never came. Outside of examinations and testing, the Astral researchers ignored him, saying that he is not their responsibility whenever he worked up the guts to ask them about his future.

“Haah!” He swung his sword down at the angel in front of him and the angel wobbled on her feet but managed to block his attack with a shield. Restrains during training were practically nonexistent – their bodies regenerated fast so as long as their wings weren’t damaged, everything else was allowed.

    Including low blows. The angel kicked Sandalphon in the shin and he gasped in surprise when her spear stabbed him in the shoulder.

“Ugh…” He moaned in pain and jumped away. Pain exploded in his shoulder and he almost lost his balance but he was forced to fight back when the angel charged back at him and he was pushed to the defense. Blades clashed as he haphazardly tried to block her blows while compressing his shoulder.

“What are you doing? If this was a battlefield you’d be dead by now.” The Astral scolded him and Sandalphon exhaled, getting more and more exhausted. He was losing and the pain just further fueled his frustration.

 

   Belial burst into laughter, almost losing his balance on the table. Lucilius went back to his paper, annoyed.

“What the hell was that?” He gasped in between laughs, wiping the tears from his eyes. “What the hell did Lucifer make?!”

“So you’re saying that his creator is to blame?” Lucilius’ low voice ran clear through the laughter and Belial stopped, blinking at him.

“I’m saying that Sandy doesn’t perform well on stage.” He relaxed and sat up, looking down at Lucilius, trying to gauge the situation.

“So the creator is to blame?” Lucilius repeated. He stopped writing and instead glared at him. If the creation’s faults were the creator’s then the creator’s creator was also at fault.

    Belial coughed and smiled at him sheepish.

“It’s awfully hot today, Cilius. Perhaps you should take that robe off.”

“Answer me, Belial.” His tone was sharp enough to cut diamonds and Belial could sense clear danger looming in the horizon. He jumped up to the window sill and straightened his back.

“Oh, would you look at the time, sorry Lucilius, but gotta go. I promised to give a researcher a hand. Think he wanted a handjob.” Belial waved him off and before Lucilius could grab his staff, Belial jumped out of the window and flew away on his wings.

     Lucilius sighed and closed the window with his staff.

 _So the Creator is at fault, huh?”_ He tried to focus his attention back to the report. 

…

 

  They met in the enclosed garden. A gentle, cool breeze blew the tree branches and the leaves’ shadows danced across the stone path.

   This was the second time Lucilius was invited for coffee.

“You’re still wasting your time with that?” He idled by the table while Lucifer prepared the coffee. It was the late morning with the sun drawing nearer and nearer to its highest point in the sky.

“I think you will be surprised with the improvements _we_ ’ve made.” Lucifer smiled faintly and put the set on the tray. He carried it over to the table and poured for his friend first and then for himself. Lucilius eyed it with suspicion. It didn’t look any different from last time.

“Here you go.” Lucifer put the cup in front of him. There were two sugar cookies on the saucer. He then took his own cup and sat down opposites his friend. Lucilius sat with his legs crossed. 

   When Lucilius brought the cup to his lips, he first analyzed the aroma. There was a pleasant, calming smell to it which certainly made him understand why Lucifer and his little pet focus so much on it but smell was smell and the olfactory sensory system was surprisingly easy to stimulate and manipulate. Plus the problem was the taste, not the smell.

    Lucifer waited for Lucilius to taste it first, out of courtesy and out of curiosity over what his friend would say. He didn’t count how many times he made coffee by now and how many times he tried to improve the process so that more people can enjoy it, not just him and Sandalphon. Thankfully, Lucilius didn’t make him wait long.

    Lucilius grimaced. As he expected, it wasn’t that much different from the first time. But it went unsaid. Some things are better left unsaid.

“Why are you so interested in this?” Lucilius asked him instead.

“It’s because …I have seen primarchs bond over this beverage and I’ve grown fascinated by it.” Lucifer explained plainly. It was a simple concept, easy to digest.

“Sometimes beauty is in simplicity.” Lucilius tried the sugar cookie next. It definitely helped with overcoming the absolute _bitterness_ of Lucifer’s concoction and he would even say that he enjoys it but that was more because he derived enjoyment from the cookie, not from coffee. _To enjoy the sweet, you must endure the bitter_ , he remembered someone from his past telling him that. Lucilius found it utterly laughable.

“I’ve seen the people of the sky sit down together, drink and talk. They bond and these bonds give value to their short lives.” _A wish to fulfil and a reason to live._

    Lucilius narrowed his eyes at him. He took another bite of his cookie. Lucifer took a sip from his coffee.

“For a while now I’ve been considering sharing this plant with the skydwellers so they can enjoy it as well.” Lucifer confessed. There was a nagging feeling at the back of his head from his time spend with Sandalphon pondering over the different ways they could improve it. Perhaps if this coffee brought so much peace to them, then maybe it can help the skydwellers as well?

“Are you fine with that?”

“Pardon?” Lucifer blinked in confusion and his friend sighed, exhausted.

“Standing there without doing anything is a very pointless existence wouldn’t you agree?” Before Lucifer could even think about answering, Lucilius continued.

“Just accepting things as they come without any attempt to change your own fate…I’ve expected more of you, Lucifer.” _Providence._ The natural disposition to all things created in this world by the Omnipotent following a predetermined purpose and a predetermined end.

   Barely but Lucifer managed to notice a genuine _sadness_ underlying Lucilius’ tone. The Supreme Primarch looked down towards his cup, deep in thoughts. For once he was unable to say anything to his friend.

“Ah, I didn’t mean to depress you. I suppose even a creature like you can’t go past its programming.” Was his friend sad? Was his friend bitter? Lucifer didn’t know. An uncomfortable feeling akin to guilt settled down in his chest.

“No, it’s fine. I understand what you’re saying.” His cup was half empty and Lucilius cup was almost full. One cookie remained.

“Do you disagree then?” Leaned back and folded his arms.

“I can’t agree with you but I can’t disagree.” It was a strategic answer. He looked at his friend’s expression to see if the lack of conclusion upset him. If there was any emotion on Lucilius’ face it was well hidden by his cold eyes.

“That’s fair.” He said dismissively and ate the second cookie. Lucifer finished his coffee.

    They chatted for a while longer, mostly about Lucilius projects and Otherworld forces at the border. In a sense, things returned as they were after the initial conversation. Lucifer continued pondering over what his friend told him but he never voiced his concerns while Lucilius hid that momentary dejection he showed earlier. When they were done, Lucilius got up to leave but Lucifer called after him.

“Would you like to come for coffee again?”

    Lucilius laughed.

“I’ve decided to give you another chance with your drink but it really isn’t my taste.”

“I see.” Lucifer finished putting the dishes on the tray. He smiled at Lucilius. “Thank you for believing in me and giving me a second chance to convince you otherwise, my friend.”

…

 

_“Hehehe…I knew we wouldn’t see eye to eye. And that you’d confront me about it.”_

    Lucilius was the first one brought to justice, but the sight of his friend’s motionless body on the marbled floor and the blood pooling around his head didn’t comfort to Lucifer.

“I have to…clean the body.” He sheathed his sword. The fatal slash was so swift that no blood remained on the blade.

…

 

  He flew up, cutting through the clouds and shining like thunder. Lucilius didn’t have enough time to recover and adjust t to his new body properly for what he was about to do but he trusted _his friend_ enough for its success.

 _“In the end…you made your own choice and that choice led to your ruin, Lucifer.”_ In that regard, they were no different. But unlike him, Lucilius rebelled from the beginning. He remained as the one that was going to see the dawn of the world.

   His final divine obstacle waited.

 

**Author's Note:**

> thank you very much for reading and have a nice day! Your feedback is really appreciated!
> 
> hello, 000 destroyed me and I've never felt more validated in my life, I CAN'T WAIT FOR PART 2 OF 000 
> 
> this is a bit of character dynamics exploration, I guess


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